They will affect
international students in 3 ways:-
1) Re Tier 2 – As
you know, one requirement of Tier 2 is that the employer must ensure that they
will be paying the specified minimum salary levels for each occupational area
as detailed in the ‘Occupation Codes of Practice’, published by the UKBA on
their website, before they can issue a certificate of sponsorship. Well, after
much lobbying, they have changed the minimum salary levels and created a ‘new
entrants rate’ for graduates switching from Tier 4 to Tier 2. This will reduce the pay threshold needed for
international students to be employed under the newly formed Tier 2 route. This
is good news, as for some occupations, the level was very high.
But there is still
the overall minimum level of £20,300 (up from £20,000) and salaries can’t be
below this.
2) Re Tier 1-Graduate Entrepreneur route- nationally
the government announced that it has expanded the scheme to include an
additional 1,000 places for talented MBA graduates from all UK Higher Education
Institutions.
The University
of Sheffield will have 10 places of these places.
So this means that for the University of Sheffield there
will be 20 places a year in total, with 10 of these reserved for MBA students. Graduates
on Tier 1 Graduate Entrepreneur are able to combine employment alongside
setting up their business with no limit on hours of work.
3) Tier 4 Doctoral Extension Programme (DES) - From 6 April PhD and other doctoral level
students will be able to apply for a 12 month visa extension under Tier 4 to look
for skilled work in the UK either on an employed or self- employed basis. Applicants
will need to be sponsored by the University under this scheme. This means they
will need to be able to show that they intend to work in the UK and will comply
with the reporting requirements as required by the University.
The timing of
the application is important so check out information on this.
If a graduate goes
on to the DES and gets a job and wants to stay on in the UK after the 12 months
then they will then have to apply to transfer onto another category such as Tier
2.
So this is all
good news and shows that the government is listening – at least a little.
But Employers will
not necessarily be aware of these changes so you will need to ensure that you
understand your own situation and entitlement and be prepared to explain it to
employers at interview etc.
Also please note
that this is a very brief overview and the Careers Service can only give very
general information on this area. At this University, the Student Union Advice Centre
is the expert on visas and the right to work in the UK after studies. So check
out their webpages
and follow them on Twitter @SheffieldSAC
You can also have
a 1-1 with their International Student Adviser if needed, - contact the Student
Advice Centre (0114 2228660) to
arrange this.
You will also
find information on the UKCISA website- UKCISA
And on the UKBA
website UKBA
Judy
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